Operation: FIRSTAGE
by captainwii
Summary: My prequel to both my KND fanfics and the KND canon timeline. the story of the KND's origins and its rise to the First Age, see how one boy's journey leads to an event that changed the world forever. Please read and review.
1. prologue

Operation: F.I.R.S.T.A.G.E

Fine-tuned

Incident

Raises

Stage

To

Achieve

Greatness

Eternally

Prologue.

The Kids Next Door...

When many unaware adults hear that name, they simply assume it's some elaborate game of pretend.

Obviously, few know the truth.

For countless generations, this heroic child-based organization has battled to protect kids from any and all evils that would harm or oppress them, it has prospered and struggled, it has collapsed and rebuilt, it has lose and won, yet even today has possessed an existance that has outlasted perhaps almost everything else humanity created.

But how truly could that be possible? not even today's KND Operatives at ranks with access to the most classified files even knew.. until now.

Recently, through an undisclosed source, the current Supreme Leader, Numbuh 362 (Rachel Mckenzie), somehow was given documents that reveal the whole tale of what was only vaguely revealed, through perhaps in some way traced from, the Book of KND.

The very first chapter of the KND's legacy; The First Age.

Numbuh 362 shortly decided, upon her discovery of those documents, that knowledge of this tale rightfully belongs to all KND that would hear it.

Monty Uno, known by the KND as Numbuh Zero, may have founded the 7th Age KND, but that fact alone would have been nothing if one boy before him did not create the KND and led it into its First Age.

The one boy whose actions and decisions changed the world forever, the boy whose name and Operative number has been engraved into the hearts and minds of all KND Operatives (even the decommissioned, since their KND Memories are technically buried, not straight up erased) after him.

Herminius Cato, who would later in his life be known as KND Operative Numbuh I and the creator a powerful force of good with an almost timeless existance.

_This is his story..._

(Author's note: Hello readers! you just finished the prologue of what I'm calling my idea for how the KND was created, and if you couldn't tell from the Classical Latin name I gave our main hero, this will take place in Ancient Rome, and while some artistic license will be taken, I actually did quite a bit of research on that historical period, so the later chapters, feel free to point out any mistakes you see when you review. Keeep in touch!)


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

(note: The Italic text below are some paragraphs of the ancient KND documents mentioned in the prologue, which will serve to help narrate this story)

_I do not know how long it would be when this story will be found, if it would be found, but I had to keep this secret even from Cato, the boy that made a decision that changed the world, a great leader and a faithful friend. He wrote only a small amount of this story in what is now (and probubly will still be generations later, if what Cato believes is true, but I will get to that much later) known as the first chapter of The Book of Kids Next Door. Why? It was a rather harsher journey than Cato would have wanted, and there were a good amount of things he would have wanted to put behind him completely. So why am I writing this? Simple really, I firmly believe that the whole story, for good or ill, has to be told. I won't let what Gaius Julius Caesar did to the past with the Libarary of Alexandria happen to the past of the Kids Next Door, there is a good reason why it was risen the way it has, and it is only right that that reason becomes known. _

_It started just days after Cato turned 7._

Over a thousand years ago, during the time of the Roman Empire, there was a lavishly built country villa just miles outside the city of Rome, it was home to a wealthy Roman Senator named Priscus Herminius, his wife, and his 2 children.

One of these children was Cato, a young Roman boy who just recently turned 7, he had short black hair, olive skin common among Mediterraneans, wore a red sleeveless tunic and regular Roman sandals. It was a warm summer afternoon when young Cato was sitting in the main room on a roman couch playing a board game with his older sister, Varinia, who was in her late teens, had long black hair tied to a bun, and wore a long-sleeved dark blue tunic and plain white sorta.

Varinia rolled a pair of dice, moved a game piece, and said, "Well, that cuts off your wheat supply with me taking Egypt."

An impressed Cato said in astonishment, but he noticed an opening and pretended not to notice, he said, "You know, I sometimes wonder why I keep hearing from Father that fighting in war is a man's job alone."

"Well there have been some rare occasions where women fought," Varinia said, "Most recent I heard was that one in Britannia, gave our Legions a run for their money, But why it's so rare? my guess is to keep any would-be babies from facing the tip of a sword, But personally, I could care less."

Cato scoffed, "Maybe there's another reason*," He rolled the dice and had few of his game pieces surround Varinia's pieces, but the only thing that seem caught Varinina by surprise was how one of his pieces land on Persia.

(*If that seemed politically incorrect to you, keep in mind I'm doing a time period where that stuff was fairly common, so historical license is obviously being taken in this fanfic, also bear in mind that it is a canon fact that the KND did not offically allow girls in their ranks until the start of the 7th Age, but for good measure and to keep in good taste, I'll be keeping it as minimal as I can from this point on)

"My, my," Varinia said with slight sarcasm to hide how she was slightly impressed, "Little Cato has taken Persia, not even during Julius Caesar's or Emperor Claudius' reigns has that happened, No doubt if you were a general you could single-handedly take the whole world under Roman rule."

"You know, I sometimes wonder why these outside-people, these 'barbarians' fight so hard to keep themselves out of Roman rule," Cato wondered, "I mean, haven't they learned what we've accomplished? our Aquaducts, our roads, I see no reason why they wouldn't look at us and think of being in Roman soil as just an improvement and nothing else."

"Some people don't like change, Cato," Varinia said, "And let's be fair, some things aren't meant to change, people like, for example, the Persians probubly don't like the idea of us invading them for the same reason we wouldn't like to trade our gods for that single one that growing religous group is so fond of."

"I guess that makes sense," Cato said, "But change does happen, right?"

"Yes, for good or ill," Varinia said, "Sometimes it happens because it's unavoidable, other times people make it so themselves, but should or shouldn't change you could argue is just a matter of perspective. Besides, alot of these peoples the Roman Empire have conquered consider us to have only brought bad changes."

"Why," A confused and slightly worried Cato asked, "What have we done wrong?"

"From their point of view," Varinia answered, "Alot of things, but at your age, I think I'd only catch the fires of the Underworld from our father and mother telling you what they think, but someday you might find that out yourself. But in the meantime, let's continue the game."

_Yes, Cato back then was quite naive, He lived happily and comfortably to a wealthy family, and was for most of his life unaware of what life was like outside the villa he called home, what fates awaited the less fortunate. He did not know what a good amount of us... non-Romans thought about what his people have done. But that started to change when he and I first met... _

Before Cato and Varinia could finish their game, the front door opened and Cato's father, Priscus Herminius went inside, he was a middle-aged man that had short black hair that appeared to be graying out, and he wore a Roman senatorial tunic and toga with Roman sandals. Following him was a dark-skinned boy who seemed to be around Cato's age, he wore an Egyptian skirt and Egyptian eyeliner and had a shaven head.

Herminius said with a mild smile, "I'm home!" both Cato and Varinina practically jumped off their couches to move over to him and both hug him lovingly, "So, where's your mother?"

"She's over in your and her room, getting massaged by one of the slaves," Varinia answered.

The 3 Romans continued their group hug for afew seconds until the Egyptian boy looked at them and, thinking them to be distracted, he was about to walk off only to be quickly stopped by a feminine yet authoratively-sounding voice that said, "Don't even think about it, slave."

The Egyptian boy turned to see a middle-aged Roman woman who wore her hair in an elaborately braided ponytail, a pale green ankle-length tunic, and a plain white sorta.

Cato noticed the Egyptian boy and decided to let go of his father to look at him. Cato was fasinated by the dark-skinned child and the way he looked, but the Egyptian boy simply ignored him, as he had bigger things to worry about.

Herminius was greeted by the middle-aged Roman woman with them giving each other a brief kiss, he said, "It always makes me content to see myself greeted by my family, perhaps foremost by you, Hilaria."

Varinia approached the middle aged Roman woman, named Hilaria, and said, "Very timely arrival, but how'd you know that dark-skinned boy here is a slave? he just came here with Father."

"A mother's instinct," Hilaria answered, but everyone in the room could tell it was an obvious lie, even Cato, but he was too polite to say anything about it, so he assumed his mother simply gave a wild guess.

"Indeed, today's session in the Forum finished early," Herminius said, "So I decided to take a detour in Rome's marketplace, I saw this young Egyptian in the slave market for sale at a good price, so I decided we could use an extra pair of hands in this household."

"Do all Egyptians look like him?" Cato asked.

"A good amount of them," Cato's father answered, "I've been here afew times myself, the current Governor of Egypt is even a friend of mine if you can believe it. They used to be part of their own kingdom, until we Romans changed that. Anyway, before I forget, I better have this new slave prepared for work."

Herminius clapped his hands and one of the adult household slaves entered the room.

Herminus said to the adult slave, "Put this boy to work in the gardens out back, but first," Herminus took a knife from the table in the middle of the room and briefly placed the blade of it at the Egyptian boy's neck, the boy stood stiffly but looked extremely nervous, as if he thought Herminius planned on cutting his throat. This caught Cato by surprise, he never saw his dad do something like that, not even to the other household slaves. But Herminius moved the blade away from the Egyptian boy's neck and swiftly sliced off his skirt, rendering the boy naked and covering himself in embaressment. Herminius then said, "Get him some proper clothes."

The adult slave nudged his head to the room behind him, motioning the dark-skinned boy to follow him, which he did.

Around half an hour later, Cato came to the villa gardens to see the Egyptian Boy now wearing a grey, sleeveless, and cheaply made tunic, he was picking dates and placing them in a basket.

Cato approached the Egyptian boy, but before he said say anything, the dark-skinned boy said in a sarcastic tone without looking at Cato, "Oh my, I am approached by one of my mighty Roman masters, how might I serve you, oh great one? would you like a message? or maybe you'd like me to rub on you that olive oil stuff you Romans seem to like so much?"

"I was hoping to at least get you name before you snark me to death" Cato said, slightly wierd out.

"You approach a slave asking only for a name?" the dark-skinned boy asked, finally turning to Cato and crossing his arms, "When every other Roman moved their lips since I was pulled out of my own home, they come to me asking, no, demanding for almost everything except my name, they think simply labeling me 'slave' is sufficient enough."

"But I'm asking just for you name," Cato asked, "Is that, of all things, too much to ask?"

The dark-skinned boy sighed and said, "Alright, the name is Nebi, Roman, don't wear it out."

"My name is Cato," Cato said, "And be honest; what's your problem with Romans?"

"I believe I said a minute ago that I was pulled out of my home," Nebi said, "weeks ago I was minding my own business bringing a basin of Nile water to my house when a bunch of Roman soldiers came out of nowhere and grabbed me and several other children, next thing we knew we were on the backs of carts and being constantly called slaves."

"Just grabbing and enslaving kids out of the blue?" Cato asked, He was shocked by what Nebi said, he suddenly exclaimed angrily, "You have to be lying! Egypt's part of the Empire now, we'd never do such a thing to her citizens!"

Nebi chuckled slightly, "You don't get out much, do you? have you even been to this city called Rome that you Romans are so proud of?"

"Well, no," Cato said, "I've been in this Villa all my life, my father hired a Greek private tutor to educate me and I've spent much of my time playing either with myself, my sister, or the children of some of my parents' friends that occassionally come over."

"Well now," an intrigued Nebi said, then sarcastically added, "I take it you were taught that everywhere you Romans went all you did was come to us preaching about how marvellous your empire was and how we can all have fancy-schmancy houses, the best cooked food in the world, and watch all the best Greek plays all the time, were you?"

"But it's true, isn't it?" Cato asked, "Your lives in Egypt have radically improved because of us."

Nebi scoffed, though seemed to be somewhat enjoying this conversation, "You seriously think that's entirely true? Even putting aside how I among several other kids were suddenly grabbed and enslaved without any chance to protest, you Romans have had us treated like second class 'citizens' by giving us less rights and privileges than even the lesser-fortunate of you Romans get, you took from us our Monarchy, run by one of our gods; the Pharaoh! in favor of your Emperor. Not to mention if it weren't for your Gaius Julius Caesar, we'd still have the Library of Alexandria! One of the largest and greatest sources of infomation in the entire world! We Egyptians were just fine until you came along, but you clearly knew nothing about any of this.." Nebi paused for a moment, thinking, but before Cato could respond, Nebi continued, "though what if I were to tell you that you Romans have also been very nasty torward your own people?"

"I'm just gonna be blunt;" Cato said, not knowing what to make of what Nebi was telling him, "I'm finding everything you've said very far-fetched, and that last bit you said isn't even on top of my list."

"Hmm, I guess you're right," Nebi said, "Clearly I'm talking to someone who knows too little about the world in general, much less the truth about his own people, and right now I've got no way to prove it all, but maybe there is a way, Are you parents planning on going to Rome with you in tow at any point at all?"

"Actually, yes," Cato said but raised an eyebrow, wondering what Nebi was thinking, "My father has recently been invited by a friend of his to attend a dinner party tomarrow in his villa in the city, my father wants my mother, sister, and me to come along with him."

"Perfect!" Nebi exclaimed cheerfully, "If you can convince your father to bring me along as well, whatever he'd have me do, I should be able to prove to you precisely what your people really are..."

_That was my very first meeting with Cato, neither of us would have guested we would shortly become best friends after that, though some have suspected that the sort of meeting we had was a sure sign we were bound to be friends, but I still don't see the logic behind that. But anyway, I expected to simply show him babies getting 'exposed', or maybe a slave being at the mercy of an abusive master, but what proof that was presented to Cato about the cruelty his people were known for had in effect I did not mean to happen, and would set both him and me though a chain of events that would change both our lives forever. _


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 3

_The next day was when Cato and his family made their way to Rome. And fortunately, it was easy for Cato to convince his father to let me tag along, and even more fortunate that his father didn't ask Cato to state his reasons, considering what might happen to me if he did. Anyway, it was dusk when we arrived to the home of that family friend Cato mentioned earlier. And it was there that though I technically got what I wanted to show Cato, it was revealed in a way even I, with my bigotry toward Romans back then, could never have expected._

Cato's family arrived to Rome via horse cart with their new Egyptian slave Nebi in tow, on their way to the home of Herminius' friend, a fellow senator named Priscus.

In the cart, Cato's family were rather quick to catch on to how he's been speaking with Nebi to increasing degrees, and fortunately for Nebi, neither of them have even hinted the slightest on how Nebi plans to find proof to Cato over the cruelty the Romans are known for. But little did Nebi know that in just afew hours, he won't have to.

It was close to nighttime by the time they arrived, Herminius was first to get off as he quickly turned to his family afterward to say something.

"Now there's no need to worry about formalities" Herminius calmly stated, "My friend Priscus is actually quite casual for someone of his wealth, just think about how you'd behave back home and you should have nothing to worry about."

The moment Cato and his family entered Priscus' domus to see their host. Priscus was a Roman who seemed to be around Herminius' age and wearing a senatorial tunic and toga just as Herminius was as well, but he seemed to have a little but of red hair on his head that was balding, and much to their surprise, he greeted them rather briefly before quickly retreating back to one of many long tables in the weird spacious atrium that he and a handful of other party guests. Cato's father, Herminius, saw Priscus hastily grabbing a brass goblet and some wine into it and, suspecting something, started approaching Priscus to confront him.

Nebi simply leaned casually on a wall close to the front door, observing the party the Romans were having, muttering to himself; "My mother once described the upper class Egyptians having festivities like this.. and here I always thought we Egyptians had nothing in common with them.."

He saw Cato walking toward him, Cato curiously asked, "Seen anything yet?"

"You mean aside from some of the party guests, along with the host, getting pathetically drunk from all that wine?" Nebi asked with a slight amount of the sarcasm he enjoys giving out, "Oddly enough, no."

"Are you really sure we Romans are a bunch of cruel bullies?" Cato asked, questioning his new friend's cynicism.

"Far as I'm concerned, Cato" Nebi replied, Cato was already slightly surprised, as even after Nebi got used to casually speaking with him, the snarky Egyptian rarely referred to Cato by name, "You're perhaps the ONLY Roman who's nothing like your people, you're from a wealthy family yet you are friendly and generous, if still fairly naive."

"You're not a bad person yourself," Cato said, "I know this must seem weird, but my years in that villa have been a little lonely, My father sometimes has a hard time making time with us because of his duties as a senator and my mother spends most of her time gossiping with friends, my sister Varinia was the one I usually end up spending time with, but in the short time you came, you're probably the first friend I've ever really made."

"Oh, uh, well, um, that's kind of you, thanks," Nebi stammered in surprise, which Cato found telling, especially since this was a rare time Nebi wasn't being snarky.

"Well, I saw some honey cakes on one of the tables here," Cato said, "Want me to get us some before they're all gone?"

"Well, I've never really tried Roman food,: Nebi said, "So hey, why not?"

"Alright!" Cato started walking toward one of the tables.

"Though I probably shouldn't expect much, considering you Romans keep getting poisoned all the time," Nebi mumbled.

"Say what?" Cato turn to Nebi and asked.

"Nothing," Nebi quickly answered.

But as Cato was about to pick up said honey cakes, he saw his father trying to talk to Priscus to no avail, as Priscus seemed to be acting very rowdy and unstable, it was evident that he was wasted in ways even some of his Roman guests found excessive, to the point where some of the guests left, wishing to avoid the worst of it should it come.

"Priscus!" Herminius exclaimed, "You need to settle down and sober up! your rowdiness is scaring off the guests!"

"Gaaaaah, theeeeey're just being juuuuumpy," Priscus slurred, clearly denying how wasted he was, "Yoooou clearlllly didn't haaaaave enoooough tooo drink!"

"After seeing you like this," Herminius retorted, "it makes me slightly ashamed to even look at wine!"

" &%$ off, Herminius!" Priscus swore.

"You'd do well to watch your-," Herminius was cut off when Priscus took a knife that was on the table next to him and smacked Herminius' head with the knife's pommel, knocking him to the floor and causing him to be dazed and rubbing his head in pain.

Nebi, Cato, and the rest of Cato's family were shocked by that sudden attack. the rest of the party guests also saw and ran out of the domus in fear.

Priscus was incoherently shouting and wildly swinging his knife around. Cato saw a boy slightly younger than him trying to approach Priscus.

The boy, who appeared considerably timid, said to Priscus, "Father? please! you're scaring most of your guests!"

Priscus turned to the boy, who was apparently his son, and continued to shout, obviously not Latin or Greek, like a Roman, but something completely unintelligible, like a mad wild animal, he was clearly now too drunk to even be aware of what he was doing. Priscus then starting swinging his knife erratically at his son, who managed to jump away from the swing to avoid getting hit and tried to run off, but he accidentally steps on a goblet left on the floor, slipped, and fell to the floor himself, with his drunken father close by, the boy became too scared to move and shuddered in a troubled fetal position.

Cato saw this and without hesitation, sprinted at Priscus, and before Priscus could actually harm his son, Cato was able to get close enough that he jumped high enough to grab the arm Priscus was using to hold his knife. Cato the pulled down on Priscus' arm so that he forced Priscus into stabbing himself in the leg. Cato then landed on the floor and saw Priscus screaming in pain as he went down on 1 knee and was pulling the knife out of his leg.

Priscus glared at Cato and sneered, "What in Hades?-!" Cato stood between Priscus and his son in case the drunken senator was planning to attempt filicide again, though he apparently found himself slightly sobered up from the pain of getting stabbed in the leg, if the fact he can speak Latin again was any indication.

"Go!" Cato commanded Priscus' son, "I'll keep him busy!"

Priscus' son nodded as he got up and ran off, but Priscus wasn't paying attention to that as he was looking at the kid that made him stab himself in the leg.

Priscus finally pulled the knife out of his leg and said in a dark tone, "I'll make sure you regret what you ju-"

Priscus was cut-off when something hit him in the head and knocked him unconscious. Cato saw a brass plate next to Priscus and then at Nebi, who was at the other side of the room and apparently the one who threw the plate at Priscus like a discus.

Herminius finally recovered from the blow he took from Priscus and stood back up to see what happened.

"GUARDS!" Herminius called out, 2 Roman guardsmen rushed into the domus and approached Herminius, who pointed at the unconscious Priscus, "That man tried to kill his own son as well as mine in a drunken stupor, my son and our recently bought slave here were able to stop him, you can ask them or my wife and daughter and they'll confirm what I've told you, take him away."

The Roman guards nodded, pulled the unconscious Priscus up by his arms, and dragged him out of the domus.

But Cato looked at Priscus as he was being dragged away, Cato was horrified by what Priscus tried to do, he never even imagined anyone would do such a thing, and afew dreadful thoughts crawled into his mind, _Is this what everyone else thinks of us Romans? Is that why they fight so hard to stay out of being part of the Empire? Is this what Nebi was talking about?_


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_As I mentioned before, as much as I hated the Romans (with Cato as, at that time, the only exception, few others would rise on me later on), I never expected to see what happened in that party, a man irresponsibly throws himself in a drunken stupor and almost kills his son child without even being aware of it. Even Cato's father seemed disgusted by what his friend was doing, which- wait, forget I wrote that word I scratched out, the details aren't that relevant yet. _

_However, this was one of many moments that Cato refused to allow added when we started writing the Book of KND, if you've read it, you'd not doubt have originally been lead to believe that Cato started a heroic journey right after hearing of the forced slavery on free Egyptian children._

_Because that alone would prompt a lone Roman boy to instantly start forming the KND, right reader?_

_In case sarcasm is an alien concept in whatever culture you're from, no, it does not._

_The point is, what happened in that party was what really the starting point that gave Cato second thoughts over what he thought he knew about his people and the Empire he called home, and the moment where things start to work their way to where we are now. _

Still nighttime, Cato was sitting alone in his room, he couldn't get what happened in that party out of his head, had he and Nebi not intervened, that boy would've died, all because his father allowed himself to go crazy with his wine. _How could a Roman, or anyone for that matter, be so careless to reduce him or herself to something like that? _Cato thought to himself, _I know I wouldn't, but is that just it? Nebi said himself I'm nothing like what other people think when they hear the word 'Roman'._

Varinia calmly entered the room, she looked genuinely concerned as she sat next to her little brother, "Cato, you've been more quiet than ever since we left that party, is it about what happened back there?"

"Do people do things like that happen often?" Cato asked, "even us Romans?"

Varinia sighed in what seemed like a regretful tone, "In a way, _especially _us Romans."

Cato looked up at his sister, "But... that has to be the most horrid and irresponsible thing I've ever seen someone do! the fact that man nearly killed his own son because of his own alcoholism!"

"Yeah, Priscus, to put it lightly, has gotten way too comfortable ever sense he came into the senate," Varinia said with slight disgust, "That, in a way, has always been our biggest problem even before the Republic was formed, many of us have lived very luxurious lives and it made many of us decadent, lazy, ..irresponsible, the non-Romans of the world know this much about us, perhaps better than we do. But even some of us Romans took awareness of this, you want to know why many Roman Emperors, or even kings and leaders in other places and times have been tyrants?"

"Why?" Cato asked.

"Same reason Priscus went heavy on that wine that nearly killed his son;" Varinia answered, "People get to decadent and, in turn, incompetent, that they simply use their power to get what they want and rarely ever care about the consequences. That no doubt is why your Egyptian friend thinks so lowly about Romans, Nebi was his name, right?"

Cato's eyes widened in surprise, "You know about him?"

Varinia chuckled, "I've been overhearing your conversations with our new dark-skinned slave, unless I missed something, he's practically become the first real friend you've made in the short time he's been around, plus you've become the first Roman he's met that he didn't see as an arrogant and decadent bully."

"And he mentioned he was taken from his hometown and forcibly enslaved," Cato added, then said in a slightly sarcastic tone, "No doubt another part of Roman decadence?"

"I suppose that's possible, but not even the government could get away with something this drastic," Varinia said.

"Nebi seems convinced otherwise, he may be cynical and snarky, but stuck to his story even after I befriended him," Cato stated.

"One could argue he's lying and he's actually a born slave that got sold," Varinia debated, "but on the other hand, there's no proof that he's either lying or telling the truth."

Cato thought for a moment, then said, "Maybe there's a way one can find out for certain?"

Varinia figured what her little brother had to be thinking, as logically there was only one sure-fire way to find out about the enslaved Egyptian children conspiracy Nebi brought up.

Varinia stood up and looked down at Cato sternly, "No way! Cato, you don't realize what sort of dangerous game you're playing. Even if there is a conspiracy to enslave free Egyptian kids, you'd be in over your head clashing with the Roman Government, our father may be a senator, but the last thing you want is to be caught in the middle of the Empire's politics, it's never pretty for anyone."

"But how else can any of us figure out what's going on?" Cato asked her sister, "I personally believe Nebi when he said he was forced into slavery, but if he's right, how can this be stopped if none of us know anything about what's behind it?"

Varinia crouched to Cato's eye level, placed both her hands on his shoulders, and gave him a stern gaze that Cato found slightly unnerving, he never saw her sister like this before, but some subtle shaking and the way she briefly bit her lower lip suggested she was actually scared.

"Cato, listen to me," Varinia said in the most serious tone she ever gave out, "If there's any truth about the Empire you've known for the longest time, it's that you know what our nation is capable of. if you do anything to intervene with any political affairs, legit or otherwise, you could only get yourself killed, exiled, or maybe, worst of all, crucified! Whatever's going on in Egypt is none of your business and you'll no doubt be at your safest if you let it stay that way. If you want Nebi to have his freedom back, the best you can do is hope our father will eventually free him in one way or another. You got that?"

Without thinking, Cato simply nodded frantically, he was so intimidated by the way his sister spoke to him that he didn't even notice she was actually more scared than he was.

"Good... good..." Varinia sighed in relief, her head hanged down as she stood back up, she started rubbing her forehead and suddenly seemed to be exhausted, "I... I think I need to lay down."

As Varinia left the room to go to bed, Cato laid tirelessly on his bed, he couldn't thoughts about how Roman soldiers could get away with putting Egyptian children in the slave market, as well as the way Varinia spoke to him when he suggested investigating the issue, constantly plagued his mind. To him, the former didn't make much sense, How would roman soldiers be able to get away with something like that? even if the government authorized it, one would think the Egyptians would have done something in retaliation.

All of a sudden, Cato slight sniffling coming from outside, he quietly walked out of the villa to see Nebi just sitting next to the doorway to the back gardens, he looked obviously depressed.

"Nebi?"

"She obviously cares about you, your sister, I mean," Nebi said, "to have someone like that with you, you have no idea how lucky you are compared to other children."

"You thinking about your family?" Cato asked.

Nebi nodded as Cato sat next to him and they both looked at the stary night sky, "Before I was brought here, I lived in Alexandria, one of many cities Alexander the Great built when he formed the largest empire in the world to date. My mother and I both worked hard harvesting wheat in a little farm we owned, we weren't very wealthy, but we were both happy enough."

"What about your father?" Cato asked.

"My mother said he passed away just days before I turned 3, he caught some disease but none of the doctors could figure out how to deal with it. In a way I found it slightly disturbing since he was a Greek. And the Greeks, I hear, had some of the best doctors and smartest people in the known world. Though I would give anything to hear how the smartest people in the world allowed themselves to be invaded by Romans, guess brains can't block swords, but I digress."

"So you're part Greek? funny, I used to be tutored in speaking Greek." Cato said, he then playfully said a Greek phrase, hoping to confuse Nebi.

"I guess if there's one thing you share in common with other Romans, it's that you like playing games with foreigners," Nebi said in a deadpan tone, "Besides, I knew what you just said; 'You think there will be a point someone screws up with doing a play on Hercules?' and in my opinion; yes, I already know all about how you Romans have... liberality interpreted Egyptians, wouldn't surprise me if someone did so with the Greeks."

Cato chuckled, "Anyway, can you say anything else about your father?"

"Well, believe it or not," Nebi said, "My mother also said he was an engineer that was hired to work for a roman architect, it paid well enough that if he was still alive, we might've become as wealthy as your family is. but after his death he didn't have enough money saved for retirement or to open much of a business, so my mother built a farm instead. I must've inherited some of his smarts though, if the irrigation system I made was any indication."

"Wait," Cato interrupted, "You made an irrigation system?"

"my father had alot of notes on his works left behind," Nebi stated, "When my mother showed them to me I decided to give some of them a try, it wasn't easy but I figured them out. That irrigation system? that was for the wheat we grew, it made things a little easier."

"Wow," Cato said, amazed, "I never personally knew anyone that could stuff like that, let alone someone my age. Now I'm surprised you were even enslaved to begin with, if anything, I'm shocked no one has hired you to do engineering for them by now."

Nebi scoffed, "Hire a kid? to do an adults job? when was the last time you saw an adult take you seriously like that? Surely you know as well as I do that most adults consider such an idea beneath them. far as they're concerned; children have their stuff to do and adults have their stuff and never the two shall meet. Far as most people are concerned, that's just the natural order of things."

Cato thought for a moment and said, "maybe there's a way we can-"

"Get adults to take kids seriously?" Nebi finished for Cato, "Still thinking about going to Egypt to look into what happened to me and other Egyptian kids?"

"Don't you want to know how this happened in the first place?" Cato asked, "I lately had a hard time sleeping with the whole thing in mind."

"Let's say hypothetically you do make this journey," Nebi said, "How would you even get to Egypt? and even if you managed to get there safely, where would you start looking for clues? who would you talk to?"

"I think I could figure something out," Cato said, unbothered by Nebi's questions.

"You're being either too optimistic or too crazy for your own good!" Nebi criticized, " Don't be an idiot, You're not gonna last long without a proper plan in mind, heck, I already have a good plan in mind."

"You do?" Cato asked.

Nebi nodded, "I was brought here by a merchant boat that docked in the harbors to the western shores. There should be a boat heading for Egypt, as I know it gets alot of trade to and fro with Rome. We can stowaway on one of the boats and, after a few days voyage, sneak back out to the first Egyptian harbor it docks to. and the best place for us to start looking for clues would be the governor of Egypt's home, it should be easy enough to ask for directions to it, especially if we pose as couriers to avoid arousing suspicion."

"Wait," Cato interrupted, "You want to go with me? now I think you're the one being crazy, I know Romans don't take kindly to escaping slaves, you'd have the authorities hunting you down to the ends of the Earth until you're recaptured or dead."

"And what's worse? slavery or death?" Nebi asked, "You'd be surprised how mixed this argument has been, and I'd like to see who's right." Nebi's voice then somewhat trailed off, as if speaking in a depressed tone, "Besides, I'd like to see my mother again, if only for a little while."

"All the more reason for us to make the journey then," Cato said with an encouraging smile, but realized something, "though we'd obviously have to sneak out, I doubt my family would say yes to me going to Egypt in general, let alone bringing you along with me."

"True, though do you think it would be safe to return after we figure the whole thing in Egypt out?" Nebi asked.

"I don't think I could guess on that for the life of me," Cato answered, "If we're lucky, you'll get your freedom back and get to stay in Egypt while I only have to endure an intense scolding when, or if, I get to go back to Rome. If not..."

"I think we'll just cross that bridge when we get there," Nebi said, "And just hope that at least we don't get slow painful deaths."

"Best we start now while everyone's asleep," Cato said, "I'll sneak around the villa to quickly get some supplies for the journey, you wait for me at the western edge of the back garden, we can head out as soon as we reunite here."

"Got it," Nebi said as he dashed off to the western edge of the garden.

Nebi waited a few minutes until Cato came back with 2 satchels of supplies, they both nodded at each other and immediately headed out.

_That was the real start of our journey, we didn't know what we would find, but Cato and I both had a gut feeling that it had to be found. I've come to admire Cato's selflessness, he stood to lose alot more than I did, he had a comfortable life with a wealthy family, if somewhat inattentive if the fact its his sister he spends time with most is any indication. but i digress. I in comparison, have already been taken from my home and mother. At that point I practically had nothing left to lose, and getting caught could at worse result in my death, what's the worst the Romans could do to me? Cato was quick to be willing to sacrifice what he had for the slight chance this might get me back my freedom, or at least bring justice to those responsible._

_I couldn't ask the gods for a greater friend than that._


End file.
